Welcome to August! I've been rushing through laundry one load after another all day to try to get it all done before we move. Because of the flood that kept us out of our house for 11 weeks, everything in the house has a faint septic odor. We decided we'd rather wash everything before we move than risk bringing that smell with us. One month in and I'm nearing the end of the heaps of laundry! Seven people have a lot of laundry! I did not realize how much "too small" stuff we still had laying around!

Today I did what may be the last bunny chores in this house. We are hoping to get the animals moved tomorrow, which means I don't really want full feed bins and water bowls jostling around with frightened rabbits running circles in cages in the back of the vehicle as we make the 40 minute drive to the new house. I'm sure my brother (who will be driving said vehicle) would also appreciate not having to clean up food and water in addition to the standard rabbit messes. We bought a big tarp today to make sure the inside of the vehicle remains protected while we make this transition. I'm still leery about having to make two trips with the rabbits. Than means loading half of them up and driving them out there, unloading them, and then leaving them behind while we go and get the other half of the herd. We've been to the property several times, and I know there is a mouse problem (as evidenced by multiple mouse nests, a couple dead mice, and the previous owners leaving Irish Spring soap all over the house). Where there is a mouse problem there will typically be predators around to take advantage of the boon in population. And what eats mice will often also prey on rabbits. I have no way of knowing if there are fox or raccoons or skunks in the area that could potentially get in to the new bunny barn (which has a large gap that needs to be filled in before we get too set up in there). We also have not installed an exhaust fan onto the building, so in the meantime I have to keep the garage door open, hopefully with a chain link kennel panel blocking the bottom of the garage door to allow air flow. Problem is that this will also let in little critters, as well as flies and mosquitoes, which are sure to flock to the shade and fresh rabbit food source. And the gaps left by putting the kennel panel in cock-eyed to keep the door open is another issue. So I'm worried that when I come back with the second load of bunnies, the first ones may have a Roanoke Colony experience. (Google search Roanoke Colony if you don't get the reference).

Odysseus, the only blue/fawn kit. I wish he had better markings, but he's still pretty cute.

Today is the first day of the county fair. It's an odd feeling for me. I love the fair, and we go every year. We have taken our bunnies every year to show them, but this year we can't due to moving. It feels so strange to know that we have no bunnies there, we won't be showing them or sharing photos of our ribbons, and we might not even make it out to the fair at all this year due to packing and moving. This will be our last year in this county too, and the new house is far away from the county fair for that county. Strange because as of tonight the county fair is within walking distance.

​The new house will be fun, but it's going to take some time to get used to all the new and different things. The sounds of the trains going by aren't much different right now than the sounds in our current home. It's the same train line that goes by, but the line is much closer to the new house. I'm sure it will be louder in the winter when the deciduous trees lose their leaves and the sound buffer isn't there anymore. It will be a welcome change not to have light flashing across the bedroom ceiling all night as cars drive by, or the sound of cars pulling up in front of the house at all hours when neighbors work late shifts or have friends coming and going - or when neighbors are having a spat and screaming and swearing at one another before squealing tires and driving away at 1am. What new sounds may greet us in our country home is yet to be determined.

There are all new routines and patterns to memorize. Which way to turn the knobs to get the perfect shower temperature, Where the silverware drawer is, and which cupboard contains the bowls and plates. These are things most people don't think about, or don't find all that important, but when you are a family with Asperger's, these small things are pretty huge hurtles and are likely to spark some serious meltdowns.

Oh, and did I mention that it's also supposed to rain tomorrow afternoon straight through Thursday? Moving in the rain! That should be fun. Tony booked to rent a UHaul truck tomorrow evening into Thursday to move anything we can't get moved with my Dad's trailer being hauled by my brother (since my Dad works this week). At least we will have an enclosed option if we have stuff we don't want to get wet on the trip!

Today we spoke to a second internet company. Apparently nobody has lines that go out to the new farm. We're at a loss. Satellite internet is available but requires a two year contract. We are still looking at balancing our budget and need it to be somewhat fluid in case we need to cut costs along the way. For now we are going to have to use cell phone data for any internet needs, including all blog posts from the time we shut off the computers in the old house to move them, until we can figure out another way. This will unfortunately mean no vlogs just yet. We won't have internet enough to do vlogs or YouTube videos for a while. I know I had promised vlogs starting when we moved. I am so sorry! I did not realize we would be this stuck for internet service options. I do hope to have videos posted regularly once we get internet, and as of right now, if I use my phone to make a video, I can upload it when we visit my parents using their wifi. However, due to distance, our family meals will no longer be once a week. We may have to cut down to every other week, or possibly once a month when the weather starts to get cold and the roads are slick.